The disclosure relates generally to coaxial cable connectors, and particularly to a gripping aid for allowing a technician to tighten a coaxial connector to an equipment port while providing a mechanism to prevent or limit connector loosening.
Coaxial cable connectors, such as Type F connectors, are used to attach a coaxial cable to another object such as an appliance or junction having a terminal, or port, adapted to engage the connector. Such connectors are typically attached to the end of a coaxial cable using various cable preparation techniques and installation tools. Many of these connectors are compressed axially to complete the attachment process, and are hence known as “compression connectors.” Once compressed onto the end of a coaxial cable, the connector is attached to various equipment ports. Often these ports are incorporated into somewhat fragile equipment, such as a DVD player or television set. Due to the sensitive nature of equipment of this type, field installers are hesitant to use a wrench to tighten a coaxial cable connector onto a port of such equipment. Additionally, consumers often disconnect coaxial cables from equipment when relocating such equipment, but consumers are usually not adequately trained or equipped to properly reconnect such coaxial connectors to the equipment ports following such relocation. Accordingly, the connectors may not be sufficiently tightened, and poor picture quality often results, whereupon the CATV system operator is obliged to send out a qualified field technician to address the issue, resulting in what is known in the industry as a “truck roll.” Truck rolls and related service calls burden CATV system operators in terms of both finance and customer satisfaction and are to be avoided as much as possible.
In the past, others have attempted to provide a coaxial connector assembly which avoids the need for wrenches or other installation tools when tightening the coaxial connector to an equipment port. For example, Ben Hughes Communication Products Company, doing business as CablePrep, offers a torque wrench product sold under the trademark “Wing Ding.” These and similar products are formed of plastic, are installed over an F-style coaxial connector, and include a pair of opposing wings for allowing a user greater leverage when hand-tightening the coupling nut of a coaxial connector as compared with directly grasping the coupling nut itself However, considerable manipulation is often required to install such devices onto the coaxial connector and the coupling nut. In addition, torque wrenches intended to be used with such products typically provide only a relatively short area for fingers to grip. A short gripping area makes it difficult to access and rotate the coupling nut of the coaxial connector when the connector is installed in a recess formed in the back of a television or other video equipment, as is often the case.
Other attempts to produce a more easily grasped connector have resulted in special connectors with grip aids built in. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,716,062 to Palinkas, et al., discloses an F-type connector wherein the coupling nut includes a cylindrical outer skirt of constant outer diameter and a knurled gripping surface. Likewise, Visicom of Australia offers a series of RF connectors that include an elongated coupling nut having a knurled outer surface for better gripping.
While at least some of the above noted approaches may serve to provide a means for improved torquing of connectors with bare finger pressure, they typically fail to provide a means to lock the connector coupler in position and fail to prevent or limit accidental or incidental loosing of the connected joint.